Fractured
by Princessatheart88
Summary: Takes place after the events of the season finale, 1x21. Simmons is grief-stricken over Fitz's condition. She refuses to sit idly by and watch him deteriorate. What lengths is she willing to go through to get her best friend back?


**This is just a one-shot I wrote to cope with the Season 1 finale of "Agents of Shield." Someone can finish this if they'd like. Ultimately, I know how I want this to end up, but I'm just not sure about some of the details in the middle.**

_Just for this moment, as long as you're mine, I've lost all resistance, and crossed some borderline, and if it turns out, it's over too fast, I'll make every last moment last, as long as you're mine._

Simmons awoke with a start – she had fallen asleep listening to the faint, but steady pulse of Fitz's heart monitor. Brushing aside stray pieces of hair that were plastered against her tear-stained cheeks, she moved from his bedside to check his vitals. She heard the familiar sound of the medical bay doors opening and turned.

"Anything?" asked Skye hopefully.

"No change," the scientist answered. She reclaimed her seat next to Fitz.

The hacker watched as Jemma carefully smoothed out the wrinkles of his bed sheets. The girl looked nearly as pale as her unconscious partner. Her eyes were red-rimmed and puffy with dark circles taking up residence beneath.

"Maybe you could take a break?" she suggested, her voice tinged with concern. The plate of toast she left on the table the night before remained untouched. "Get some rest, have something to eat and-"

"No," said Simmons, cutting her off. She knew her teammate had good intentions; she probably looked awful and could use a shower, but she was not going to leave his side. "I'm staying here."

Jemma had talked very little about the circumstances surrounding her and Fitz's ordeal by Ward's hands and their subsequent escape since arriving at the Playground. In fact, she hardly talked at all. It was as if the chipper and optimistic part of her was as comatose as Fitz. Skye couldn't blame her- she'd probably react the same way if it was her best friend, except that she would want revenge; revenge against the one responsible. Ward. It seemed ironic now that the one who held longest onto the belief that Ward wasn't evil was the same one who suffered the most. But wherever Ward was now, undoubtedly he was getting his just reward.

Skye turned her attention back to Simmons. She figured that the pair needed some space. "Let me know if you need anything," she said softly before leaving the room.

Simmons brought a hand to Fitz's hair and gently stroked his brown curls. "This is my fault," she croaked hoarsely as tears spilling down her face. "We never should have gone into the field. We were perfectly content in a lab, but I wanted adventure, and I made you come with me." She wiped one of her eyes with the heel of her hand. "I thought we'd get the chance to see the world, make a difference, but this…" she roamed his motionless body, "I never could have predicted this. I'm so sorry." She gripped his hand and buried her head into the bed's blankets, sobbing.

_I couldn't find the courage to tell you. So please, let me show you._

His final words to her were haunting; swirling amongst other played out scenarios in which she pictured they both could have swam to the surface from their watery coffin.

"How could you leave me alone?" Jemma questioned aloud, her voice muffled.

_You're taking it. I couldn't live if you didn't._

Somehow, she always knew that they were more than friends, but she pushed those contemplations to the back of her mind, choosing to focus on work instead; it was easier that way. But she took that ease for granted, and now it was gone, possibly forever. And if he ever woke up, he might not be the same. The anger and pain from that realization hit her like a tidal wave, and once more, she felt like she was drowning.

She struggled to breathe, her chest heaving, gasping for air. Without him, life seemed meaningless. "Please come back," she begged. "Please…"

Suddenly, she raised her head to look at Fitz with an epiphany. The GH-325. It wasn't all gone.

"I won't let you go," she whispered determinedly to him, kissing his forehead.

Jemma bolted from the bed and ran to Agent Coulson's office.

"Sir, I know of a way to save Fitz," she said breathlessly when she entered the room.

He looked up from the work spread across his desk. "How?"

"A while back after Skye stabilized from the GH-325, against your orders, I took blood samples and had them analyzed at the Hub. I would like permission to retrieve them."

Coulson sighed. "Simmons, I'd like to help Fitz too, but the Hub doesn't exist anymore. I don't know what we would be facing if we went there, and those samples could have been confiscated, not to mention the severity of the drug itself. The side effects are extremely hazardous. You saw it firsthand with Garrett. If I had the choice, I wouldn't have taken it either. And Skye-"

"But sir, May has been monitoring you for some time now, and she hasn't seen any adverse reactions. And from what I've observed, Skye is-"

"Skye was subjected to the treatment as a last resort. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone."

"But-"

"I'm sorry, Simmons," he said sternly, hoping to impart a finality to the discussion.

With a quivering lip, Jemma left the room with fresh tears, disbelieving his unwillingness to help. He was a living, breathing hypocrite, doling out orders as if he still held such power. Shield was gone. Besides, she conducted research on Skye's blood before without permission, and she didn't need it now. She would do this for Fitz, no matter the consequences.

"She has a point, you know," stated May who watched Simmons run from the office.

"Which one?"

"You haven't exhibited signs of mental instability, psychosis, insanity, or tried to pull out someone's insides with your bare hands," she said with a small smile.

"Garrett was off the deep end, but I wouldn't say I'm "in the pink.""

"What do you mean?"

"Let me show you something." Coulson led her to a wall in the Bus that was scrawled with a pattern of lines and circles.

"What is this?" May questioned, running a hand across the crude etchings.

"I couldn't sleep the other night. I woke up and made this."

"Do you have any idea what it is?"

"Not a clue. This is why I couldn't endorse the retrieval mission."

"You know, Simmons once jumped out of an airplane to save the team," she mused. "What do you think she'll do for Fitz?"

"Keep an eye on her. Make sure she doesn't do anything rash."

000000

"You're just gonna go by yourself?" Skye asked, startling Jemma who was shoving things into a bag in her room.

"I can't rely on Coulson's help."

"I'm willing to try," said Skye. "But since those samples are mine, couldn't you just draw some more of my blood here without taking the trip?"

"The blood drawn from you at the earlier stages of receiving the drug was more potent. If I were to draw from you now, the sample would be too diluted. The Hub samples are the closest we can get to the direct source."

"You ladies are going to need some backup," said Triplett joining the pair, loading a gun and sliding it into a hip holster.

"So," asked Skye, folding her arms across her chest, "when do we leave?"

_Every moment, as long as you're mine, I'll wake up my body, and make up for lost time, say there's no future, for us as a pair, and though I may know I don't care, just for this moment._


End file.
